For the last 120 years, the elites have been fighting a war on Rural America. Move to the cities, they tell us, and we can mechanize food production and make your food for you so you don’t have to. Rather than seeing Blacks get closer and closer to equality through free enterprise and hard work, they decided that nobody would benefit, and that they should drive as many farmers as possible off the land. The elites felt threatened by a populace that was too independent, that owned its own land, raised its own food, and set its own standards for how they wanted to raise their children. It is no coincidence that a rash of foreclosures happened in Rural America starting in the 1920’s, during the same time as race riots in places like East St. Louis, Tulsa, and other places.
A population dependent on the elites to keep them fed and happy pleases the elites more than a population which forms its own communities, owns its own houses and land, and depends on its own local businesses.
But now, a turning of the tide might be underway. The elites have bitten off more than they can chew with their escalation of the Ukraine conflict and their plans to rupture relations with China over Taiwan. They are trapped by their rhetoric over high crime decimating the cities. For the first time in decades, people are wanting to move back to the country, where things are not as crazy, where conditions are safer, and you don’t have to worry as much about crime, and where neighbors are there to lend a helping hand.
Over the last few decades, we have been more and more dependent on companies in China, India, Mexico, and elsewhere to keep us supplied. This was a trend accelerated by Bill Clinton and his embrace of NAFTA, which drove jobs out of the country, never to return.
But if China invades Taiwan like Russia did with Ukraine, the party will be over. India is purchasing tons of oil from Russia, earning the wrath of the elites, who claim that the US has veto power over the dealings other nations have with each other; relations are likely to head south. Where will we get all our goods from? Now, all of a sudden, people are realizing that maybe it’s safer to invest right here in Rural America. Thanks to the Internet, we can run a business from home and sell goods all over the country for a living. People can work remotely and not have to fight traffic for hours a day. People can consult with a doctor, get a degree, apply for a job, watch their favorite shows, all online.
Now, we are seeing all these efforts by people of both main parties, seeking to connect broadband to Northwest Missouri and other forgotten parts of the country. In this week’s issue, we report on news releases we got from a design competition from college students seeking to bring broadband to this area. The Missouri Farm Bureau President was recently in Washington testifying for more broadband funding. People at the state level are seeing Northwest Missouri’s efforts to bring broadband to the area as a model for the rest of the state.
Maybe this sort of thing is the way to bring the country back together. The problem with dependency on the government is that programs and policies change with the whims of politicians, and spending is always limited by inflation. The problem with dependency on corporations is that corporations might not care if you need more hours to make a living wage, or need flexibility in order to take care of a child or loved one. And people from higher up might decide that it’s better to move to Mexico. But giving people the resources they need to make their own living, grow their own food, and buy locally is the sort of thing that gives people meaning.
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